The Big Dip by Melanie Jackson Page A

cheeks.
    This, from Skip—confident, nothing-fazed-him Skip ?
    Shocked, I released him. He sat up. The tears flowed on. They had a more powerful impact than if he’d punched me.
    â€œI’m so sorry,” Skip wept. “So sorry, Mojo. I screwed up big-time. I went too far. I wouldn’t have hurt Ellie. You’re my best friend. You know I wouldn’t hurt your sister.”
    Maybe I knew that. Or maybe I didn’t know Skip at all.
    â€œI’m gonna let you go for now,” I said. “I want you to get outta here. Away from Ellie and me. I’ll decide what to do about you later.”
    I stood up. He struggled to his feet, swayed and staggered off.
    I rushed over to Ellie. She was slumped against the safety bar. Jumping into the car, I put my arms around her. “Wake up, El.” I stroked her face. “You gotta wake up.”
    She moaned.
    With a sudden lurch, the train was in motion. Light flooded out of the control booth. Skip grinned at me.
    He’d pulled the lever.
    The train clattered along the rails. If I was alone, I could have jumped free—but not with Ellie.
    â€œSorry, Joe,” Skip laughed—a crazed, gleeful laugh. “I couldn’t let you tell anyone. Think about it. There’s no way I could let you spoil my life.”
    â€œSHUT IT OFF, SKIP,” I yelled.
    Still laughing, Skip shook his head. “I always could get the better of you.”
    The train started its climb up to the top of the big dip.
    I hauled Ellie off the safety bar, then yanked it up. If I could just pull the bar down over us…
    It was too late. The train had reached the peak.
    It crashed down the big dip, pitching Ellie and me forward, out of the car. I clung to the bar, stopping us from hurtling off. I braced my feet on the floor and jammed a hip into the side of the car to weigh us down.
    The rails flew past. Below I saw Skip laughing. My hand, clutching the bar, was stiff with pain.
    The icy air whipping into our faces woke Ellie. Not knowing where she was, she screamed and tried to shove me away.
    My hand slipped from the bar. My feet left the car floor. We slid over the front edge. The black wind, spinning up echoes of Skip’s crazed, dark-soul laughter, sucked us forward.

Chapter Twelve
    Then, with a jolt, the train hit the bottom of the big dip. As it climbed the next hill, we smashed back onto the floor of the car. The safety bar slammed against my skull.
    Ellie screamed and punched me. She still didn’t know who I was.
    We kept climbing. Ahead of us, gold fireworks torched the sky. Their strands seemed to urge us to plunge toward them.
    I was dizzy, and for an instant I thought I was in a race. I thought that I’d run my heart and lungs out and couldn’t go any farther. I stared at the fireworks. They were saying, Why struggle? You’ll never make it anyway. Give up. Relax…
    But I couldn’t give up, not till the finish line flashed below me. I was a runner, not a quitter.
    I hoisted Ellie up as far as I could. I was able to bring the safety bar down under her chin. It was the best I could do. If Ellie didn’t choke to death, she’d have great horror stories for her grandchildren.
    We reached the peak and crashed down. I gripped the sides of the car and pressed my weight against the safety bar. I couldn’t be sure I’d secured it.
    â€œJoe!?” shrieked Ellie, scrunched up beside me. “Where are we? What are you doing ?”
    The train plunged to the next valley. She screamed.
    â€œThink of it as tough love,” I yelled.
    I’d been on this coaster a million times. I figured we had seven, eight, more dips ahead of us. The good thing was, none of them was like the big dip.
    The bad thing was my head was ringing, and I was getting confused about what was up and what was down. My hands were ice blocks. The wind seared into my skin. I felt like I was going to pass out.
    The fireworks were now white-hot